Cannes Day 6: Soggy dollars, Woody and Wong!

Can it really be Day 6? That’s what the calendar tells me, but I’m just not comprehending how that’s possible. Perhaps I’ve lost all sense of time after experiencing one too many bouts of currency-exchange shock. It is grim, PopWatchers, having to convert Euros into dollars. The dollar is so weak — 1.6 Euros to one lousy U.S. dollar — that I’m still smarting over the small bottle of water I bought at the American Pavilion last week that cost me the equivalent of five dollars. (UPDATE: Oops, got that backwards. It’s 1.6 lousy dollars to one mighty Euro.) And on the first day, Dave Karger bought a bowtie for the opening night gala that set him back 125 big ones. The weak buck is already affecting the acquisitions market, which has been as dead as one of the cadavers from Bad Blood, that Piper Laurie flick in ads everywhere here.

Despite a soggy Saturday night, when I got drenched running down the Croisette to the gala premiere of Walter Salles’ (and Daniela Thomas’) new film, Linha de Passe, things have been sunny — both weather-wise and movie-wise. Yesterday was, of course, International Indiana Jones Day here in Cannes. I believe Dave and Lisa Schwarzbaum have sufficiently covered that topic. Other highlights for moi included waking up early and running over to the swank Martinez Hotel to interview Woody Allen (pictured, with Wong Kar-Wai), who told me he still doesn’t quite understand why the Europeans love him so much. “They see things in [my films], so I don’t question it. It’s a gift,” he said. “Sometimes I think the films gain something in translation. You know, when I watch an Ingmar Bergman film, I don’t speak any Swedish, so they’re acting and saying things and I can’t tell if there’s anything wrong, if there’s anything bad. It looks to me just great. So it’s possible that my films look great to [Europeans] and they don’t see what I’ve done wrong because they’re seeing a translation of the film.” Or maybe they just think he’s swell? I then stuck around the Martinez for a lovely outdoor-patio lunch with the beloved New York director and his Vicky Cristina Barcelona cast. Penelope Cruz was there, looking — surprise! — stunning in a white Chanel dress. She ate asparagus. And what do you know? So did I!

Later that night, I caught the premiere screening of Ashes of Time Redux, aretooling of Wong Kar-Wai’s 1994 martial arts epic. It’s the film whoseprotracted production so frustrated the Hong Kong master that hedecided to take a break in the middle of shooting and make one of myfavorite films of all time, Chungking Express. I’d never seen Asheson the big screen, so soaking up all those gorgeous, shutter-effectshots of sword fights in the middle of the desert in ancient China wasa delight. And seeing Wong, his longtime cinematographer ChristopherDoyle, and three of the film’s stars (including the marvelous TonyLeung) stand on stage to lead a moment of silence for the victims ofthe recent earthquake in China was incredibly moving.

Tomorrowmorning is the eagerly awaited premiere of Clint Eastwood’s TheChangeling, starring Angelina Jolie. It’s at 8:30 a.m., which can bekind of brutal. Especially when I’m now facing a sleepless night,thanks to the deafening sounds of a god-awful karaoke rendition ofBritney’s “Toxic” coming from some party across the street from myhotel. (Why oh why did I get a room facing the street?!) But you won’tcatch me complaining about setting my alarm for Clint. No way. I’m tooexcited about seeing the movie. Plus, I’d be too scared he’d tell me togo ahead and Make. His. Day.